He tapped out a reply.
An old friend.
Elias hit send, then thought better of his three-word reply.
It wasn’t like he could reach out to his sisters. Merida was the closest thing he had to a relationship sounding board. Before he could reword his answer, Merida replied.
Old friend, my ass. Zain said you two looked cozy. Spill!
The taxi eased to a stop at a red light.
They still had a ways to go. Then there was the clothing change and another drive before things went down. He had time.
Jo was in my unit. She’s someone I care about. Helping her out with a thing.
He hit send, then kept typing. Maybe he did need another woman’s opinion?
I don’t know what we are now. Are you going to be an ass if I’m honest?
Elias stared at the screen, willing Merida to reply immediately.
He didn’t have to wait long for her reply.
Sweet Jesus. You like her! Have you always liked her? Is she why you never went on any of those dates I tried to set you up with?
Guilty.
He cringed.
It probably said something about him that Jo was the woman he compared all others to. And for him, everyone else came up short.
He was saved from having to answer Merida’s questions by another incoming text from her.
I’m not an ass. I just don’t let you get away with shit. Like I’m not going to let you get away with leaving me out of the loop!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yikes.
That was a lot of exclamation points.
Elias started typing. It felt foolish to text stuff like this, but this was his only option to work it out now, when he needed out of the mental loop he’d been trapped in.
Yes, I like Jo. Yes, I’ve been attracted to her for a long time. It meant a lot that she called me for a favor, and stuff has happened that change things.
He hit send before he could think better of it. Thumbs hovering over the keys, he considered his next words. Did he tell her everything?
Merida wasn’t exactly one to talk secrets. Some people called her cold. He saw her as careful.
She wouldn’t betray his trust. He knew that.
Elias’ thumbs flew as he typed, trying to not think too hard about what it was he was saying.
I told her last night that I love her. It just came out at the worst possible moment, and now we have to do this thing and she’s barely talking to me. IDK how to handle this. Any insight?
Merida’s reply was almost instantaneous.
HOLY SHIT!
Was that a bad holy shit? Or a good one? Were the exclamation points an indicator of something?
A second message from Merida came in right on its heels. She must be glued to her phone.
I cannot believe I have lived to see the day where you actually look at a woman. I’m proud of you, Woody. My guess is that if you’re the guy she called in a crisis, she likes you way more than as a friend. Ask her when you get some downtime. Keep me posted!!!!!!!!!
Elias blew out a breath. Merida’s words comforted him, but only so much. Jo wasn’t like other women.
In for a penny...
He’d already left himself open. Might as well make use of the opportunity to talk to Merida.
Question. Don’t bust my balls for this. Is there an easy way to buy one of those same color bra and panty sets if I don’t know top sizing?
He closed his eyes and waited.
Merida did not disappoint.
You are so getting your balls busted, but not by me! That’s her job now. Emailing you some links and a guide. Stick to things called bralettes and you should be okay not knowing sizes. Anything else you need from your personal shopper?
Smart ass.
He shook his head. Merida was never going to let him live this down. Then again, if Jo fell for him, he wouldn’t care.
Sure. One more thing. Where would a guy buy an apron? For himself?
Elias had to exercise a lot of restraint to not laugh. He could hear Merida in his head cursing a blue streak and howling with laughter.
There are things friends shouldn’t know about each other’s sex lives. I’ll send you links, lover boy.
His phone chimed again, but no message appeared in his conversation with Merida.
Frowning, Elias tapped the notifications and paused when he saw a message from Jo.
He barely resisted the urge to glance over his shoulder where she was sitting in the backseat of the cab next to Isaac.
Her text was a simple question.
Something wrong?
Elias stared at those two words, willing them to be anything else.
They didn’t change.
He tapped out his own two words.
Work stuff.
What did he say to Jo now? How did he talk to her after blurting out, I love you?
No new messaged popped up, and Elias settled into the gloomy silence, broken only by the sound of the radio and their driver’s humming.
It felt like it took ages for them to reach Jo’s apartment.
Elias paid for the cab while she kept her eyes on Isaac and looked for anything out of place. There was always the chance that their plan could backfire.
They made it inside the modest one-bedroom apartment without issue. The place was sparsely furnished. Hell, there wasn’t hardly any clutter or signs of regular life.
“I’m going to the bathroom,” Isaac announced and trudged down the hall like he’d been there before.
Elias grit his teeth against the baseless jealousy.
The bathroom door clicked shut, and he blew out a breath.
A hand gripped his elbow. Small and familiar, he craved that strong touch.
Jo pulled him around to face her. She looked up at him with a serious expression save for her eyes. Those were...warry?
“Are we okay?” she asked.
“Yeah,” he said.
“Who were you texting?”
He paused, taking in the question, her expression—all of it.
She looked a lot like he felt right now.
“Merida. She’s... Well, I think her title is still Office Manager. She’s like a sister to me and she just found out about everything.”
“Merida? Like, the movie?”
“Nothing like that.” He had a vivid memory of Merida wielding two guns. “Actually, scratch that. Exactly like the movie.”
The suspicious look on Jo’s face didn’t budge.
Elias pulled out his phone and scrolled up.
The messages prior to today’s exchange were about Merida’s wedding. Safe enough to share since it didn’t compromise company security or secrets.
“Here.” He handed the phone to Jo.
Her eyes went wide and for a moment he didn’t think she’d take it.
What did he have to hide?
Not a thing.
Elias turned and took all of two steps into the kitchen before he was out of space. He turned and leaned against the counter, watching Jo skim the texts.
She glanced at him, then away.
There was a new awkwardness he wanted so badly to erase.
Jo held out the phone. “It wasn’t the worst moment ever.”
“Oh?” Every fiber of his body was on alert.
She shoved her hands into her back pockets. “It’s a little weird you asking advice from another girl though.”
“Who am I supposed to ask?” He shoved a hand through his hair.
“Hm. I guess you’re right. Merida sounds...cool. She’s getting married?”
“Yeah. I’m... I guess I’m who she vents to about wedding...stuff.”